James Dotson - [email protected]

[[email protected]]

Watch out for [email protected]

he had a bunch of race parts on samba, and I jumped at them. I agreed to buy 2 of the items (a race trans and some race heads). I wrote off a check and popped it in the mail. When it arrived, he got upset that it wasn't a cashier's check, yet he NEVER asked that it be a cashier's check or MO, in fact he never said he was in any sort of rush whatsoever.

I told him to simply deposit the check, and when the funds cleared just send the items to me, I was not in a rush at all either.

I assured him last night I'd send a cashier's check to him, and he was OK with that.

Fast forward to today; I check my e-mail, and tells me he's sold my two items to someone else!

James Dotson (in Texas), [email protected], is not an ethical man and not a man of his word, and is not to be trusted.

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a straight up guy, and always do as I say (or there's a REAL good reason why not).

[Yustrn]

That's cause we don't like you and you lie!

[stillworks]

Welcome to PART 2 enjoy the show.

[fourboxers]

ok this is nuts i swear i did not post that message with my email there . i saw this thread and i will not respond to it . DAMN EMAIL HACKERS thats not me posting that and i will not post another message on this thread

thanks
peace

jakub kaminski
1958 beetle
1996 cabby

[jakubs_mom_says]

LMAO! Not hacking just jakub_kaminiski instead of jakub_kaminski, notice the other i.

[Yustrn]

OH shit..that is funny...Whoever you are that is funny, I didn't even notice it...I'll give you props..YOU GOT SKILLS.

[Dave]

I don't know all the particulars, so it's probably best for me to stay the **** out of this, but there is one thing I want to say:
I know John at aircooled.net
I know his family.
I have done business with John
I have spent quite a few hours e-mailing, talking on the phone, and hangin' over a Burger and fries with John.
I have trusted John with my 78,000 mile original 55' sunroof, my '67 Deluxe walk-through 21 window, (We actually engaged in an "illegal acceleration contest on a public thoroughfare" with them, but it wasn't like we were doing burnouts; the '55 has the original never-apart 36 horse, and the 21 window was single carb'ed and single port 1600) and would trust him with the Silver Resto-Custom Oval or the Manx or the Single Cab, or anything else for that matter.
If John needed to borrow *MY WIFE* for a weekend, I would say "sure, go ahead, take over payments" lol
That's how much I trust John.
"Straight up guy" in an understatement.
I am not under contract to aircooled.net, he didn't pay me with money or parts to post this.
This has nothing to do with my place of employment, and all views expressed herein are solely mine.
JMHO.

[Trayle D. the real oggfk]

Sup Dave,l always good to see you on here. Make me wonder if you are just kickin back watch in us shaking your head, LOL.

Hey Yustrn. Im with you bro that sh!t is funny. I had to call Quintn last night and tell him what [email protected] said. We were rollin.

[Dave]

I'm doing well, busier than the proverbial one-legged man in a butt-kickin contest. There's always something to do when you have 5 running air cooled VWs, and two project Ovals, and a 59 Panel soon to come. I got enough to do just keeping the two Ovals, the 21 window, the Manx, and the Single Cab clean and running good, but me? I gotta get into a '56 sunroof that needs floor pans and etc and a '55 hardtop with semaphores that needs front clip and rear apron work.
Nah, not laughing at you guys; I get sh*t all the time from somebody who doesn't like what I had to say, or thinks my opinion is crap (Hey, it's a free country, say and think what you wanna say and think, ain't gonna hurt my feelings)or something. I got a big-name advertiser in the VW world all bent out of shape at me right now for something I wrote that he seems to have misunderstood, I was actually on his side, and somehow he has it that I was out to get him....Oh, well, onward and upward, gotta get the new wheel bearings back in the Manx so I can get the 21 window back in the garage tonite...

[bljones]

Opinions are like belly buttons- everybody's got one, some are more attractive than others, but all are individual and personal and in no way represent anyone else. sorry to hear about your advertiser trouble dave- what's the old saying? "you can please some of the people some of the time, none of the people all of the time, and any time a columnist mentions an advertiser, they ain't never pleased, none of the time, no how." It must always be a fine line to walk, expressing a monthly opinion, while at the same time trying to keep the bill-payers happy, while also trying not to let advertisers influence editorial content. Kudos on your work- keep it up, and don't let the bastards get you down.

[bljones]

Also, thanks for the heads-up, john.

[Dave]

Thanks, bljones. It can indeed be a fine line, trying to please everyone, all the time. No matter what you do or say, there will be some person, club, or company, who don't see things as you do. I don't mind that, as I said in a previous post, it's a free country. I originally got into this post because I wanted to make sure that anyone who read the start of it didn't mistake John for someone that was a fly-by-night, with no real ties to the industy/hobby/obsession. I wish I could tell all of you some of the behind-the-scenes stuff that John has done to further the hobby, but it would only serve to embarrass him and make it look like I am in his back pocket. By the way, there have been times when I went back to an advertiser,( not John, he and I share the same outlook on this) and told them this-
" Your part does not perform as you said it would. We, from here, have two choices- 1- I print the story, and give my honest opinion of said part. 2- I give you the film, the records of what we did, and the outcome, and I have never even talked to you before". I know, I know, it isn't fair to the readers to not tell the truth about a product, and I think my new employer is more apt to let me say what I think about a certain part or operation, than my previous one. That's not a slam against my previous employer; it's just how they did things. It was kind of, "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all". I think, contrary to popular belief, that the aftermarket is slowly beginning to realize that, if they sell crap parts, they will alienate people from our hobby. If someone buys a Beetle,Bus, or 'Back, and starts to restore it, and the fenders don't fit, the crank won't fit the flywheel, the seat cover is cut too small,the chrome side trim dents when you attempt to put it on, etc etc, then that person will give up on the project ( How many "unfinished projects" do YOU see on the classified on this webite?) and go buy a Toyota or a Honduh. Then, that person can no longer sell him parts, and I can't sell him a magazine, and our hobby is one small step closer to extinction. When that happens, I'm gonna have to go get a REAL job LOL. I think some manufacturers are beginning to realize this, and are changing their product lineup accordingly. It's going to be a long, slow process, but if we boycott the crap parts, and the manufacturer ends up sitting on a boatload of it, he will either try to do better, or go out of business. If you think about some of the companies, i.e., Small Car Specialties, Johnny's Speed and Chrome, Barrett Enterprises, and others, that have gone by the wayside, I think it shows that we are starting to have a more discerning buying public. Not to say that the above suppliers were any better or worse than the ones still in existence, just that they have gone the way of the dinosaur, and there had to be a reason... Damn I just realized how long this is, sorry, I should have saved this for a "Semaphore" column.

[UZI]

i'm interested if james dotson is gonna post a reply here. i always look forward to the playing field getting leveled.

[vgajames]

Well here is my reply,someone told me i should check this out. OK John failed to tell ya,yeah i did want a cashiers check,i do not know him,and he did not tell ya he added up the parts total WRONG and sent the check for THE WRONG AMOUNT.A dude from Dallas was down here to get some stuff and saw i was just giving this stuff away and offered way more,i took it. Who would not have done the same.I was selling my pride and joy drag bug parts,i stopped selling after that.I do not need this shit.Also what probably made him so made was the $1800 tranny that was $950 and the $1200 heads that $2200 heads that were $1050.He is not out any money,just did not get to STEAL my parts.Yeah sounds like some crap!

[UZI]

i'm a firm believer in talking to someone before they get FLAMED in the forums. again, two sides to ev'ry story. if ev'ry thhing both sides say is true, it sounds like john knows a deal when he sees one, plays it cool so as not to alarm the seller of the true value of his items, is so excited he goofs on writing the proper amount on the check. the dude from dallas is in the right place at the right time. john gets notified he's out and flames james dotson b/4 he talks to him. i'm wondering if john at aircooled.net was gonna resell them. both john and james are decent heart and soul VWs folks right?just my opinion as an outside observer....AND I DON'T KNOW ANY OF YOU.

[Dave]

I agree, earlyman, and thats exactly why I said I am going to stay the **** out of it. I know who vgajames is from another VW high-performance forum, and believe that, from what I have seen, he is a stand-up guy, as well as John. I don't know any of the particulars, as I said, just saying that I know John. earlyman is correct; there is always two sides to every story. If it sounded like I was 1- doubting vgajames, 2- sticking up for John, or 3- casting aspersions on the integrity of a man I don't even know, or have never even talked to or done business with, then I apologize, that was not my intention.

[vgajames]

This all got aired out pretty good. I don't have a big Volkswagen internet business,just a little bitty shop in a one horse town.I work real hard,i help my local people best i can,fix a bunch of them in the front parking lot for free very often.I love ACVW's,wish i was a member of Cal-Look.com,be nice to have my pride and joy in a magazine.Got screwed by VWoA,lost hard earned money.Sold a few parts to some happy people on this sight and Fell victom to cash in hand.I am only human.

[UZI]

anytime, it seems, i have something for sale... no bites... then all of the sudden two people want it. it happened with the last bus i sold. i took what i saw as the better offer. i handled it very carefully. buying and selling, especially on the internet can be a real drag. i'd rather just enjoy what i have, post some pictures and participate in the forums. this is great stuff.

[dakaferman]

I have known James for 8 years now. Their is noone in the vw industry I would trust more than him. I am now in Nevada and will still continue to buy parts from James because I know I get the straight answer with him. I own my own business in another industry but I hope I can run mine as fairly and honestly as James does his. James may have made a decision you don't like but I bet you got your money back. No harm, no foul? I'm sure you wouldn't like if someone vented about you on this website. Maybe if we all just take a step back, take a deep breath and act like adults and work our problems out instead of trying to give someone else a bad name over something so pety we could get on talking about vw's instead of this. Amen!

[[email protected]]

Here's my point, and I'll end it here.

1) The parts were listed FOR SALE (not for auction), so why James got off "selling them to the highest bidder" is beyond me. The items I "bought" were listed for sale at a fixed price. James sold them to someone else for $500 more then he and I had agreed to. That is not kosher.

2) My check (I didn't know until later) was short by $30. The check DIDN'T BOUNCE, it was an oversight. he never even tried to cash it.

3) James never requested a "cashiers check", or I would have sent one (they are free for me, so that's no big deal), despite what he says.

4) the items were being purchased for MY CAR. His allegation that I would re-sell the parts is assumptive and total bullshit. I run a VW parts business selling NEW parts, and would never try to sell used parts as new.

5) when James told me the parts "were mine", I contacted someone who had wanted to buy my transmission from my car, he send me a check and it's his. As a result of James's selfish actions, I now have a race car with no transmission. I would not stoop to the same level of integrity (or lack of it) and tell this guy that the trans is no longer for sale, and "tough shit, here's your check back" type of behavior. How James can imply or flat out state that HE is the one sufferring from this exchange is ludicrous! He decided to sell items for less then he paid for them when new, and is pissed off they didn't have the same value? Welcome to automotive parts James; specifically RACING automotive parts.

The end situation is I have a race car with no transmission in it, because James Dotson "changed his mind" on who and how much to sell it for. So now I have to buy a new trans when I had one that worked fine before ( I was upgrading).

So, WHO WAS SCREWED? I can't bring myself to tell that guy who bought my trans "here's your $ back", he hasnt' even picked it up yet. However, I'm a man of my word and won't do something that low-class.

And to the guy complaining that

"I'm sure you wouldn't like if someone vented about you on this website. Maybe if we all just take a step back, take a deep breath and act like adults and work our problems out instead of trying to give someone else a bad name over something so pety we could get on talking about vw's instead of this. Amen!"

this is BS. This IS the Rants/Raves section of theSamba forums, if you dont' want to read it, don't come in here. If I posted this stuff elsewhere you have a legitimate complaint, but I have not, I simply posted it in the forum designated for this purpose. Furthermore, everything posted is true (it's not fabricated). If someone has something TRUE to say about me, they can post it here, but if they tell something that's not true, I'm going to make a fuss. I have nothing to be ashamed of, and nothing to hide, so this fact doesn't bother me in the least.

What does bother me is guys doing stuff the way James Dotson did. If he wanted to auction them off, he should have auctioned them off. As far as I'm concerned, James "owes me" the difference from what I paid and what he received, though I hardly expect him to step up and make that offer, we already know the content of HIS character.

John Connolly
Aircooled.Net Inc.